The Arab American News
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Community bids farewell to first Arab American fire chief
DEARBORN— Fire Chief Nazih Hazime's leadership as a safety official and as an Arab American community figure was honored Wednesday in a farewell reception hosted by the Congress of Arab American Organizations at the Lebanese American Heritage Club. Dearborn Fire Chief Nazih Hazime, second left, receives a medal from Mayor...FBI seeks to clarify role
DETROIT — Amid heightened tensions between the FBI and American Muslim communities nationwide, Andrew Arena, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Detroit Division, recently sat down for an interview with Allan Lengel, editor of ticklethewire.com, a news website that covers federal law enforcement. Detroit District FBI Special...Arab students debate U.S. domestic issues
Oklahoma Christian University in Edmond, Okla. was the host site for the finals of a debate contest involving the brightest and best high school students from across America and the world Thursday. From left, Mohammed Albustani, Faisel Altunaiji, General Tommy Franks, Dana Alaskar and Jeris Abuhouran. Four representatives from...Al Jazeera English launches in first major U.S. cable market
HOUSTON – The English-language cousin of the Qatar based news channel Al Jazeera launched this week in the Washington D.C. area after signing its first major U.S. cable deal with non-commercial MHz Networks last week. The MHz deal means 2.3 million subscribers will now have access to the channel, adding to the 140 million...Is another conflict in Iraq inevitable?
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Relations between Iraq's various Kurdish, Arab and Turkoman ethnicities are going through a new round of complications since a provision in the draft constitution of the country's northern Kurdistan region declared a range of disputed areas part of the historical Kurdish homeland, infuriating non-Kurds in the...Questions remain about the U.S. role in Iraq
WASHINGTON (IPS) — The United States largely complied with a plan, negotiated with Iraq's government last November, to withdraw its troops from the center of all Iraqi cities by Jun. 30. Vice President Joe Biden But the late June announcement that Vice President Joe Biden will be playing a lead role in coordinating the...
Obama discredits “green light” for Israeli attack on Iran
July 10th, 20090 WASHINGTON — Seeking to end speculation about whether his administration had eased its opposition to an Israeli military strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, U.S. President Barack Obama Tuesday insisted that Washington's position remained unchanged. Biden speaks to George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week. Lauren Victoria...Some see extended olive branch for Israel in Ross appointment to NSC
WASHINGTON — The promotion of Middle East adviser Dennis Ross to a senior White House position may open the door to a more positive tone by the United States toward the Israeli government, experts believe. Dennis Ross Ross, a veteran peace negotiator known for his strong ties with Israel and his past work with a...Forget the headlines: Iraqi freedom deferred
As U.S. combat troops redeployed to the outskirts of Iraqi cities on June 30, well-staged celebrations commenced. The pro-U.S. Iraqi government declared "independence day" as police vehicles roamed the streets of war-weary Iraq in an unpersuasive show of national rejoicing. U.S. mainstream media joined the chorus, as if commemorating the...
Syria: Israel’s most valuable partner for peace
July 10th, 20090 The recent gesture by the Obama administration to re-open the U.S. embassy in Damascus and renew talks with the Syrian government was meant to lay the groundwork for a resumption of Israeli-Syrian talks under American auspices. There is indeed a window of opportunity for Israel to make peace with another Arab country, which if...
U.S. leaders asked to address growing Islamophobia
July 10th, 20090 WASHINGTON — A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group this week cited recent anti-Muslim incidents nationwide in calling on American leaders to address what it said is a "growing level of anti-Muslim prejudice and stereotyping" in American society. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said opinion...Radio legend Casey Kasem retires
American radio legend Casey Kasem officially signed off for the last time on July 4, 2009, exactly 39 years after the first broadcast of his wildly successful and ubiquitous "American Top 40" radio show. Casey Kasem The 77-year-old Lebanese/Palestinian star, whose real name was Kemal Amin Kasem, had hosted the spin-off...Muslims under scrutiny despite waning of ‘terror war’
UNITED NATIONS (IPS) — When the administration of President Barack Obama formally abandoned the longstanding U.S. "war on terror" — perceived by some as a codeword for "war against Islam" — there were hopes of a new relationship between the United States and the Muslim world after eight long years of political...Netanyahu, Ahmadinejad start cold war
The cold war is back. Last week, Vice President Joseph Biden announced in a television interview that Israel, as a sovereign state, was free to take military action to deal with Iran's nuclear program. But President Obama was not pleased to see his partner-in-leadership improvise foreign policy. Obama must have immediately cautioned his...
Obama viewed positively, but still much criticism of U.S. foreign policy
July 10th, 20090 A new WorldPublicOpinion.org poll finds that around the world U.S. foreign policy continues to receive heavy criticism on a variety of fronts, even though in 13 of 19 nations most people say they have confidence in President Obama to do the right thing in international affairs. U.S. President Barack Obama gives a thumbs up......
Autism school gives hope
A child's cognitive or behavioral disorder can be a lot for a family to deal with, especially as the nation faces a load of health care and education policy issues in a period of transition and harsh times. Burger School for Students with Autism in Garden City Immigrant communities often face extra obstacles, with cultural...
Movie asks us to vote with our forks
July 10th, 20090 As immigrants and natives alike know, many parts of American culture are worth emulating. But one aspect that Arab Americans and others should avoid is the food industry. The widely-praised new documentary movie "Food, Inc," which can be seen at the Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak and others nationwide, makes that point loud and clear......
Archbishop Hanna to tour U.S.
Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna, from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, a well known religious figure and activist for Palestinian rights, is scheduled to visit at least seven U.S. cities beginning in July 15, according to the U.S. Palestine Conference Network. Archbishop of Sevastia Theodosios Atallah...Group golfs for scholarships
WEST BLOOMFIELD — The Arab American and Chaldean Council (ACC) presented its 7th annual golf outing and scholarship award dinner at the Shenandoah Country Club on Wednesday. ACC scholarship recepients after recieving their awards Wednesday. The event raised funds for scholarships that went to deserving high school students...DSO hosts 17th annual Concert of Colors
DETROIT — The 2009 17th annual Concert of Colors, metro Detroit's free diversity-themed music festival, will present rising and established acts, bring back past favorites and offer free, outdoor activities while forging ahead in its mission to shed light on and celebrate cultural diversity through music. The festival takes place...
Can America succeed in Afghanistan?
July 10th, 20090 After more than seven and a half years in Afghanistan, the United States is mired in a seemingly impossible war. The country has only seen more violence, the political will of American allies is weak, and the Afghan government has failed to gain widespread legitimacy. As disastrous as the outcome is so far, the government thinks staying......
Hamas’ political impasse: Principle vs. necessity
Much can be said to explain, or even justify, Hamas' recent political concessions, where its top leaders in Gaza and Damascus agreed in principle with a political settlement on the basis of the two-state solution. Senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh (C) attends a rally in Gaza City in solidarity with Palestinian parliament...
Leap of faith
July 4th, 20090 Boys jump from a hill into the Tigris River in Baghdad's Adhamiya District, northern Baghdad July 1, 2009. REUTERS/Stringer WASHINGTON (IPS) — U.S. combat troops pulled out of most Iraqi cities Monday, a day before the Jun. 30 deadline for their withdrawal in accordance with the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) ratified by......
Humantarian aid boat seized by Israeli Navy
July 4th, 20090 RAMALLAH — Twenty-one international peace activists were seized by Israeli naval frigates in international waters Tuesday as their boat 'The Spirit of Humanity' tried to carry humanitarian aid to Gaza. Irish Nobel peace laureate Mairead Maguire (R) stands with another peace activist on a previous Gaza aid boat on October 29,...Hizbullah remains strong after elections
DAHIYEH — While on the surface the pro-U.S. team here did preserve its "majority" in the recent elections, the Hizbullah-led opposition actually won the election by nearly ten percent of the popular vote. Of approximately 1,495,000 votes cast on June 7, 815,000 voted for the national Lebanese resistance led by Hizbullah while 680,000......
